reader love

Good grief, it has been waaay too long since the last Reader Love post! I have been meaning to do one for so long but other things kept coming up. Now I have so many pictures you all have tagged and sent in, I may have to split it up into two installments because it’s just too much! (Want your photos to be included next time? If you share them on Instagram and your photos are public, tag @annieseats or use #annieseats. Otherwise, feel free to send them to annieseats at gmail dot com. Thanks!)

Mad props to megankateswan for this red velvet wedding cake she made and decorated with succulents. How beautiful is this?!

Speaking of crazy talent, reader Jocelyn is an incredible designer and made an illustrated version of the French and Italian macaron methods. It is totally amazing! This above is just a portion of it – see the entire thing here in all its glory. I am in awe.

And finally, I have to share an excerpt from a very touching email from reader Cara (who made the lovely pumpkin spice pancakes above). This is shared with her permission. She writes:

“Your blog in,many ways, has been life changing. Not only have I gone from the girl “who would cook when hell froze over”, I actually enjoy trying new recipes and have started to gain the confidence to tweak a recipe (gone is the panic attack when I’m missing an ingredient). Coming from an Italian family full of cooks, I was always intimated and lazy when it came to cooking. I always felt A. Why cook when all these fabulous women are always cooking such delicious food and B. My cooking couldn’t hold a candle to theirs. So what did I do? I discovered your blog via a friend on Facebook and scoured your site, intrigued by your beautiful pictures and your heart-warming stories. What I love about your site, Annie, is your relate-ability, your take charge attitude, and your fearlessness. In your kitchen and in your life you find a way and that is something that comes across in your blog, and to me has been so inspiring. … Your blog has helped pull me out of some my darker times and helped me develop a skill set I am proud of (along with a much better attitude towards “failures” i.e. learn a lesson and apply it to the future but don’t let it scare you). From making Greek yogurt weekly to making browned butter sauce for that fabulous pumpkin pasta dish, I have conquered some major anxiety in the kitchen (and life). So thank you, thank you, thank you for doing what you do! You have truly inspired me to become a better version of myself and I am so grateful. ”

Words can hardly express what it means when I receive emails like this. Knowing I am able to help someone else by making the kitchen a more approachable and fun place to be is truly the BEST thing about blogging. So thank YOU Cara, and all my awesome readers, for being here, trying new things, and having fun with me in the kitchen!

Stay tuned for another Reader Love coming soon. I still have lots more photos saved but want to make sure they all get fair play, so if you have tagged or sent a photo that wasn’t included here, you’ll probably be seeing it in a future post. Thanks for sharing your photos – I adore them!!

Share On

Beth

Wow, it must be such an amazing feeling to know that you have impacted people’s lives like this! Also, can I just mention that every picture here made me want to drool – I guess that’s a pretty good testament to the brilliance of your recipes! Beth swallowsandskylines.blogspot.com

Annie @ Annie’s Cooking Lab

Thanks so much for including me in your reader love wrap-up! That lemon layer cake was killer. I made it almost a month ago and we’re still talking about it- pretty sure that cake will be happening in my kitchen a few more times this summer!

Patti

Is it weird that I want to appear in reader love some day? ;)

Melissa Brooker

Thanks so much for including me Annie! I was so excited to see my picture there! I adore your blog! Tara’s picture reminded me that i SO need to make the cheesy broccoli quinoa casserole again soon!

Have fun cooking with and enjoying Tara’s company!

Mallori

I love this feature. I always look forward to seeing what everyone is cooking and inspires me even more!

Mallori

I love this feature on your blog as much as your recipes themselves. Unfortunately my own pictures always look hideous lol but Its great seeing what everyone is cooking and inspires little old me to try recipes I have been bookmarking.

Steph

Omgosh, I’m so excited you posted the pic of my lemon raspberry cupcakes! They were so delicious! So thankful for your blog! :)

Paula Braman-Duarte

What a lovely homage to your legion of devoted followers. And, Cara’s words, well, there’s a lesson there for all of us. Nicely done, Annie.

Diana

I feel so special to have made it twice!! Thanks for being such an inspiration in the kitchen!

Emily Kathryn Henry

How absolutely lovely and inspiring!!

Emily @ Life on Food

Look at all of the pictures. So nice!

LM

So fun scrolling down and seeing my sweet girl on the page! Thanks for including. And I love that cooking club idea. Very fun stuff!

Lauren Ochoa

It’s great to see I’m in good company with my devotion to your blog Annie. On a slightly unrelated note, do you find it offensive or amusing when people make comments like, “wow, those cupcakes look awesome! I’m going to make them, only with a box mix yellow cake instead of your recipe b/c I’ve never met a box mix cake that wasn’t amazing and I’m sure my version will taste just as good as your version! (I’m paraphrasing here but I often read comments that make me cringe and I wonder if they bother you at all?)

annieseats

Oh Lauren, how well you know me. I don’t really find it offensive but more like slightly annoying when people say they’re going to substitute X (more processed, less tasty but supposedly quicker) alternative, mainly because they are just missing the whole point of what I try to do here. But I think most people who do that are probably those who came for a specific recipe and probably aren’t longtime readers who grasp the general intent of this site. To each their own, but I sure love readers on the same wavelength as me :)

SK

Awwww look at all these wonderful pictures…. I bet you feel proud and you should be. One of these days when I am not being lazy I will email you some of my pictures too ;-) BTW I tried to strawberry chocolate cake, it was a total disaster (all my fault since I tried substituting too many things and was just having a cooking bad luck day) but even though the cake looked terrible (since my chocolate ganache seized and my strawberry butter cream was more like strawberry milk shake ;-)) the cake tasted AMAZING! Best of all I made it for my 5 year old’s birthday who really didn’t care how it looked but just loved the cake itself….that is a SCORE, right? Thank you for being an inspiration!

Victoria

How exciting to be featured in this post! I’ve been a dedicated follower for years and always turn to your blog first when I need a specific recipe or just wanted some inspiration. To all my fellow readers, I highly recommend those Lemon Blueberry Cupcakes I made. As with any of Annie’s recipes, yummy! :)